…writing by Mark Raugas
Martial Arts and Culture
The Inner Dharma writing project began in 2006 and has evolved substantially as my training interests have shifted over time. I want to thank all those who provided feedback and encouragement over the last twenty years. I continue my practice of internal martial arts and heihō kenjutsu in the Pacific Northwest.
Please visit jikishinkageryu.org (opens in a new tab) for additional content on Kashima-shinden Jiki Shinkage-ryū kenjutsu that began on Inner Dharma and has been expanded over time.
Inner Dharma resulted in several longer-term research projects whose results I have slowly merged into a series of books. I hope some of them are of interest to those who have followed this project over the years:
- Mountain, Sword, and Mind: Volume I (Shugendō and Heihō, 397 pages) examines Muromachi-era martial traditions that drew on religious culture in their founding narratives and contains summary analyses of the Shugendō canon. Volume II (Mikkyō, Zen, and Daoist Sources in Shinkage-ryū, 493 pages) takes a closer look at the core texts of Yagyū Shinkage-ryū and related traditions from this philosophical perspective. Inner Dharma, 890 pages (vol 1-2), 2026.
- From the Kōbusho to the Butokukai: The late Edo period Kōbusho that many famous Jikishinkage-ryū swordsmen were attached to, its teachers, the arts they practiced, and subsequent institutions. Inner Dharma, 360 pages, 2026.
- The Truth of the Calm Spirit: Research on Jikishinkage-ryū kenjutsu, including its early history, curriculum, and its philosophical content drawn from available Japanese language scholarship and library holdings. Inner Dharma, 368 pages, 2025.
NOTE: Some information on research methods and conventions is available, including the use of automated tools for optical character recognition, translation, search, and proofreading.
Mark Raugas
Seattle, WA
